1
a
: the communication or expression of thoughts in spoken words
b
: exchange of spoken words : conversation
4
: the power of expressing or communicating thoughts by speaking
Examples of speech in a Sentence
She has to make a speech at the convention.
a graduation speech about embracing future challenges
I was so flustered that I momentarily lost the power of speech.
Slang is used mostly in informal speech.
Many words are more common in speech than in writing.
Recent Examples on the Web
In many ways, Saturday’s talk was a truncated version of the marathon speech that the senator gave in April.
—
Linh Tat, Oc Register, 31 May 2025
Business Taken together, the changes reflect a new emphasis at Meta in favor of more unrestrained speech and more rapidly updating its apps — a dismantling of various guardrails the company has enacted over the years to curb the misuse of its platforms.
—Shannon Bond, NPR, 31 May 2025
During his speech, Kissel made winding references to railroads, attorneys’ fees, scratch-off tickets, casinos, Hartford, car fatalities, troopers, eye-hand coordination, Jack LaLanne, Methuselah, the Bible, and hallucinogenic mushrooms.
—Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 31 May 2025
Following the speech, the European Union’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas pushed back at Hegseth’s comment that European countries should focus their defense efforts in their own region and leave the Indo-Pacific more to the U.S.
—Tara Copp, Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for speech
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Linh Tat, Oc Register, 31 May 2025
Business Taken together, the changes reflect a new emphasis at Meta in favor of more unrestrained speech and more rapidly updating its apps — a dismantling of various guardrails the company has enacted over the years to curb the misuse of its platforms.
—Shannon Bond, NPR, 31 May 2025
During his speech, Kissel made winding references to railroads, attorneys’ fees, scratch-off tickets, casinos, Hartford, car fatalities, troopers, eye-hand coordination, Jack LaLanne, Methuselah, the Bible, and hallucinogenic mushrooms.
—Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 31 May 2025
Following the speech, the European Union’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas pushed back at Hegseth’s comment that European countries should focus their defense efforts in their own region and leave the Indo-Pacific more to the U.S.
—Tara Copp, Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for speech
Cite this Entry
“Speech.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/speech. Accessed 5 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
speech
noun1
: the communication or expression of thoughts in spoken words
2
a
: something that is spoken
b
: a public talk
3
: a form of communication (as a language or dialect) used by a particular group
4
: the power of expressing or communicating thoughts by speaking
Medical Definition
speech
noun
: the communication or expression of thoughts in spoken words
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